Igniting device for gas-engines.



No. 882,716. PATENTED MAR. 24, 1908.

J. v. 111015,13. IGNITING DEVICE PoR GAS ENGINES,

APPLIOATIOH I'ILQDJUKB 6. 1906.

`TOHN V. RICE, JR., OF BORDENTOWN, NEW JERSEY.

IGNITING DEVICE FOR GAS-ENGINES.

Application filed .T une 5, 1906.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented March 24, 1908.

Serial No. 320,231.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN V. RICE, Jr., a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Bordentown, county of Burlington, State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Igniting Devices for Gas-Engines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention refers to an improved igniter vor sparker for gas engines or similar explosive motors, the object being to simplify and perfect the construction and operation of the contact points making them more durable as well as more efficient, and thus, through the betterment of the igniting spark produced thereby, enabling the operation of the engine to be carried on with a greater degree of success than is ordinarily possible.

The improvements contained in this application are primarily applicable to the invention in igniters set forth and claimed in my co-pending application for Letters-Patent on igniting device for gas engines filed May 20th, 1899, Serial No. 717,564.

The invention may be said to consist essentially in the improved contact linger and its coacting parts, and in numerous details and peculiarities of the same, and of its combination and operation in connection with the other parts of the engine, substantially as will be hereinafter fully set forth and claimed.

In the annexed drawings: Figure 1 is a sectional view of a portion of an explosive engine having my improved igniting device represented as practically applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of that portion of my improved igniting device for gas engines which is screwed into the Wall of the cylinder and projects into the interior of the latter. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of that portion of my improvement which is situated outside of the cylinder and consists essentially of a springcontaining casing, and its spring arranged to impart an elastic effect to the contact finger within the cylinder during the movements of said lingen Fig. 4 is an edge view of the contact finger. Fig. 5 represents in sectional detail a modi- 'fied form of my present invention.

Like numerals of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the different figures of the drawing.

1 denotes the cylinder of a gas or other explosive engine, on the wall of which at the proper points the inlet and outlet valves are situated, although in the drawing I have not limits.

thought it necessary to delineate these valves further than to indicate the points where the valve casings are situated. Likewise on the wall of cylinder 1 is a bracket 2, at one end of which is a rotary crank disk 3 that connects by a link 4 with the crank 7 carried on the outer end of a rock shaft 6, on the inner end of which is an electrode or contact point 5, adapted to be vibrated back and forth in consequence of the rotation of the crank disk 3; but this electrode 5, and the mechanism for driving it, forms no part of the present invention, inasmuch as the same is fully and definitely illustrated and described in my other application for Letters-Patent hereinabove alluded to, and consequently I have presented here only a very meager description of this electrode.

The gist of the particular improvement covered by the present application resides in the other electrode and the manner of yieldingly supporting the same and the construction and attachment of this electrode I will now roceed to explain. Projecting into the cyiinder 1 near one end of the interior thereof and adjacent to the piston, is this electrode or contact point 8. It is formed at ,its end nearest the wall of thecylinder 1 with an enlarged head 9 which is arc shaped; the terminals of the arc furnishing rounded lugs or hook-shaped projections 10 10. These lugs 10 10 loosely engage the corresponding hooked ends of a air of jaws 11 11 that are formed integral wit an internally screw-threaded sleeve or ring 12.

13 denotes a lengthened pin or spindle having at one end a small disk 14, while the tip of the other end is recessed or indented; and is situated a short distance from the enlarged head 9 of the contact finger S. Between said head 9 and the end of the pin 13 is a loose pin 30 consisting of a short straight piece of round wire or metal having pointed or sharpened ends, one of which engages the angular indentation in the end of the pin 13, while the other engages a similar central angular notch in the head 9, said pin 30 being ke t in position between the two parts by t e s ring pressure that bears upon the spindle f isk 14, as will be presently ex lained. Surrounding the spindle 13 is a s eeve or bushing 20, bored from end to end to accommodate the spindle 13, which latter is rivileged to play endwise through the bus ing, its throw being necessarily Within narrow The upper or outer end of the bushying 20 is externally screw-threaded at 23 to allow the externally and internally threaded bushing nut 19 to be screwed thereon. rlhe opposite or lower end of the bushing 20 is provided with an integral collar 15, and an externally-threaded end 16, on which screws the jaw ring 12, the latter fitting up tightly against the collar 15, and being of substantially the same diameter as is said collar 15. It is also to be observed that an externallythreaded bushing holder 17 surrounds the bushing 20, but is insulated therefrom by a sleeve of insulating material terminating at one end in a washer 22, which effectually insulates the holder 17 from the collar 15, and at the other end in a washer 21, which effectually insulates the nut-shaped end 18 of the bushing holder 17 from the bushing nut 19.

In considering how these parts are placed in position relatively to the cylinder 1, it will be observed that the bushing holder 17 screws into a lateral screw-threaded opening in the wall of said cylinder, as is shown in Fig. 1, and a nut 25 on the bushing holder 17 clamps tightly down against the outside surface of the cylinder around the opening that contains the holder 17, acting as a jam nut.

The jaws 11 11 and the electrode 8 that engages the same project into the interior of the cylinder in such a manner that the end of the electrode may be in a position to be struck by the other electrode 5 during the vibrations of the latter. The bushing nut 19 screws into the end of a spring casing 24. In this casing is a coiled spiral spring 26, bearing at one end upon the spindle disk 14, and at the other end against a disk 28 carried by the lower end of an adjustable screw 27, which works through a nut in the upper end of the spring casing 24; said screw 27 having an external head and also an external jam nut 29 bearing down against the fixed nut in the end of the casing. By means of the screw 27 the tension of the spring 26 canv be adjusted and regulated. The effect of the spring 26 is obviously to force the spindle 13 longitudinally through the bushing 20 and kee the pin 30 in position between the end of t e spindle 13 and the contact head 9. The effect of an oscillation or movement of contact finger to the right or to the left will obviously be to lift one or the other of the contact lugs 10 out of engagement with its corresponding hooked jaw 11, the bearing of the electrode head being consequently thrown for the time being upon one of the lugs 10, while the other of said lugs is released, and the further effect must necessarily be to actuate the pin 30, which will communicate motion to the spindle 13, and cause the spring 26 to be more or less compressed, depending upon the extent of movement of the electrode. As soon as the other electrode 5 passes the electrode 8 and ceases to exert a defiecting influence thereon, said electrode 8 will, under the impulse of the controlling spring 26, jump back into its normal position. Thus it will be perceived that I provide a yielding oscillating electrode, so supported as to rebound automatically into its normal position after ring, and the supporting means provided herein are of' such character as to allow the most successful results to be achieved in actual practice, the electrode moving with great ease and facility, wearing much less on its point than is customary in the case of other oscillating electrodes that are differently supported, being, consequently, of great durability; and in addition to these advantages being a device which can be very easily placed in position, as its parts are simple and capable of being readily assembled. In actual practice l prefer to cover the pin 30, and a portion of the head 9, by side covers 31 31, which are securely fastened to the jaws 11 11 below the jaw ring 12, as shown in Fig. 4.

ln the modified form of my invention, depicted in Fig. 5, the arrangement of the parts is substantially the same as that in the other figures of the drawing, with the exception that l substitute in lieu of the spirally-coiled spring 26 a bent fiat spring 32, which is secured to the wall of the cylinder and held in position by the screw 33 having a milled head 34, whereby its tension is regulated. The end of the spring 32 bears against the end 35 of the spindle 13, said end 35 being a substitute for the disk 14 employed in the other form of the invention.

Numerous changes may be made in the exact construction and arrangement of the various parts of my present improvements without passing outside of the legitimate scope of the same. rlhe substitution of the flat spring for the spiral spring is only one of the various changes contemplated by the spirit of my invention. l reserve the liberty, therefore, of re-arranging and re-adapting the parts, and of so changing the precise embodiment of the invention as may be found to be necessary.

Having thus described my invention what f I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters-Patent is,-

1. In a gas engine igniter, a yielding oscillating electrode consisting essentially of a contact finger having a lug-provided end,

stationary hooked jaws engaging the lugs of said end, a sliding spring-provided spindle, and a pin having pointed ends and loosely situated between the end of the spindle and the contact finger, the pointed ends of said pin engaging angular indentations in the end of the spindle and in the enlarged head of the contact finger.

2. In a gas engine igniter, an electrode iso consisting essentially of an oscillating finger having an arc-shaped head provided with iso rounded projections, hook-sliaped stationary bearing on said spindle, substantially as jaws loosely engaged by said projections, an described. 10 endWise movable spindle suitably supported Signed at New York city this 29th day of so as to have a certain play, a loose pin hav- May 1906.

ing pointed ends engaging an angular inden- JOHN V. RICE, JR. tation in the end of the spindle and also an l Witnesses: j angular indentation in the enlarged head of JOI-1N H. HAZELTON,

the electrode, together With elastic means C. B. SCHROEDER. 

